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KTL 08 – Preaching with ILLUSTRATIONS for your Passage (mp3)

In this KTL session, we reviewed over our sermon structure from introductions all the way to conclusions.  It again is Intro, Need, OT Story, Truth, Christ, NT Passage, Illustration, Application.  I then had the 4 main KTL preacher boys give me their truth statements, explanation of how the passage pointed to the person and work of Christ, their NT passage, and their application statement (challenge).

The second half of the class we talked about illustrations.  Illustrations are not just stories, and its not just the next to last section of a sermon in our structure.  Rather, a good preacher illustrates all the way through his sermon.  The purpose of illustration is first and foremost to bring your passage of Scripture to life.  That is done through the way you read the text out-oud, the way you add detail and description while you talk about your passage of Scripture, and the way you tell life stories from today to give better insight into your Scripture passage.  We never start with illustrations, but illustrations should only and always flow out of your understanding and direction of the passage of Scripture you are preaching.  One of the best illustrations in the Bible is Nathan to David in 2 Samuel 12:1-7.  Nathan is not telling David a story for the sake of that story itself, but rather he is telling David the story for the sake of the truth behind the story.  Which means, illustrations are more like a window than a painting. We don’t want our congregation to sit back and admire the illustration like they would a portrait.  Rather, we want our listeners to sit back and admire God’s Worth and Truth through the illustrations we give.  We also talk about how to find good illustrations, where they come from, and what not to do.  So take a listen!